Suspended Ford Worker Who Was Flipped Off By Trump Made So Much Money On GoFundMe He Paused Donations

President Trump giving the middle-finger to a Ford employee who apparently calls it like he sees it seems to be the best thing that has ever happened to him — financially at least. TJ Sabula, a 40-year old United Auto Workers Local 600 line worker, was quickly suspended with pay by Ford after heckling the President while he was visiting one of its factories in Michigan (the President, in turn, flipped him the bird and apparently mouthed "F**k you.") But, soon after, a pair of GoFundMe pages were set up for Sabula and they took off like wildfire.

As of mid-morning on January 15, the pair of campaigns for Sabula have raised $811,010 from nearly 35,000 separate donations. Sabula, seeming to be a stand-up guy, actually decided to stop accepting donations, indicating he and his family had more than enough. 

In an update on one of the pages, Sabula wrote, "We greatly appreciate the outpouring of support! At this time we are closing donations to this campaign and encourage you to look for other causes and organizations to support. We appreciate every single donation, comment, share, and sign of support!" The other page had a similar message and said it was also closing donations. I'm not sure I'm big enough to ever stop taking free money, but good for him.

Of course, Trump didn't just pick a random guy out of the crowd to cuss out, though it wouldn't be that surprising. Sabula reportedly called Trump a "pedophile protector" during his visit to the Michigan F-150 factory. The Department of Justice faces criticisms as to the speed it has released the Epstein files–along with the redactions being made to the documents–which must be made public in compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

In any case, as we previously reported, Trump's White House didn't try to cover up or downplay what the President did, instead telling the Washington Post that "A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response." 

Sabula told The Post that he has "no regrets whatsoever," though he did add that he feels concerned about the future of his job and believes he has been "targeted for political retribution" for "embarrassing Trump in front of his friends."

It's still unclear what Sabula's future with Ford will be, but at the very least the $800,000+ he's gotten from GoFundMe will help lighten the blow. On top of that, he's got the backing of the UAW. The union posted this on its website:

The autoworker at the Dearborn Truck Plant is a proud member of a strong and fighting union —the UAW. He believes in freedom of speech, a principle we wholeheartedly embrace, and we stand with our membership in protecting their voice on the job.

The UAW will ensure that our member receives the full protection of all negotiated contract language safeguarding his job and his rights as a union member. Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone—including the President of the United States.

That's certainly the type of union representation we all deserve.

Sabula has also received support from U.S. Rep Rashida Tlaib of Detroit, who represents Detroit, calling him a "national hero," according to the Detroit Free Press. Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation and fellow Michigander Pete Buttigieg has also voiced his support.

Not everyone was on board, though, including Ford Executive Chair Bill Ford, who earlier in the visit said meeting the president was "the experience of a lifetime."

"Discipline is in the hands of the organization. It's unfortunate and 99% of the employees in the plant were great and I was embarrassed because we're the host. But that was six seconds out of an hour tour and the tour went great."

Crowdfunding campaigns can often get people all riled up about someone being rewarded for "bad behavior": In early 2025, a woman in Minnesota was caught calling a child a racist slur on a playground and then made over $800,000 on GoFundMe-alike site GiveSendGo, according to NBC News. That woman was charged with three counts of disorderly conduct by the City of Rochester, with a trial set to begin in August 2026, ABC 6 News reports.